HealthcareForAllNow paid a visit to the offices of Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Health Minister Sylvia Jones on May 9.
They delivered a petition signed by over 4,800 health-care providers, frontline workers and community members, demanding Ford reverse cuts to health-care coverage for uninsured people.
Data from 2016 indicated that over 500,000 undocumented workers were living in Ontario. They work in agriculture, long-term care, child care, hospitals, warehouses, grocery stores, and food delivery.
Migrant workers pay Employment Insurance (EI), but in most cases are unable to access EI. Because they are undocumented, they are unable to access social safety nets, including publicly-funded health care.
Other undocumented folks come as visitors, refugees, or on student visas. Some adults may have come as children and not know that they are undocumented.
In many cases, these folks came because of the promise of work or sponsorship and have experienced exploitation, abuse and sponsorship breakdown.
Calls grow for OHIP amnesty
Three years ago, the Ford government directed hospitals to provide medically necessary care to folks without OHIP coverage – due to the onset of the pandemic. The provincial government picked up the tab.
In March, Health Network for Uninsured Clients released a report, The Bridge to Universal Healthcare, that proved unconditionally funding health care for everyone living and working in Ontario improved heath outcomes and minimized health-care-related costs for individuals. The advocacy group called on the Ford government to make the temporary program permanent.
Instead, the Ford government cut OHIP coverage for uninsured individuals on April 1. Health-care providers and frontline workers are once again seeing people being refused care due to their inability to pay. This is causing insurmountable pain, suffering, and in many cases, unnecessary deaths.
The report included the experiences of uninsured people who were unable to access necessary health care for many reasons, but mainly due to a lack of money prior to the temporary OHIP amnesty.
A midwife recounted the experience of a high-risk pregnant client who was turned away from three hospitals when seeking surgery to deal with a missed miscarriage.
That delay led to life-threatening hemorrhaging that started while the client was riding public transit. She was found by the side of the road in critical condition and almost died.
A client care coordinator shared the story of an uninsured construction worker who needed heart surgery. While the hospitals involved argued over who was going to provide care, her client lost the use of his right leg and the right side of his body became paralyzed.
Unable to work, he lost his housing and ended up in the shelter system. That led to substance use, which further deteriorated his health.
The coordinator maintained that if the worker had been covered by OHIP, he would most likely have had had the surgery within a week and avoided the destruction of his life.
Permanent program needed, health-care providers say
Health-care providers are calling on the Ontario government to reverse the cuts and implement a permanent program ensuring health care for all people living in the province.
“As a physician, my duty is to provide care and promote the well-being of all my patients, regardless of their background or immigration status. It is deeply concerning to see these cuts as it contradicts our fundamental responsibility to protect the health of our communities. We urge the government to reverse these unjust cuts and restore health-care access to those in need.” said Dr. Jessica Chan, a family physician and one of the health-care providers who delivered the petitions.
The Decent Work and Health Network (DWHN) has also taken a stand for public health-care and better patient care. Health workers put up posters and signed folks up in front of St. Michael’s Hospital to demand health care, status, and decent work for all.
DWHN formed after Health Providers Against Poverty collaborated with Fight for $15 and Fairness.
One year ago, DWHN released Prescription for a Healthy Pandemic Recovery: Decent Work for All. The evidence-based report built on interviews with frontline health-care workers, while incorporating medical and public health evidence gathered before and during the pandemic. The paper called for improved wages and hours, paid sick days, and workplace protections.
It also called on the Ford government to establish a minimum wage floor of $20 per hour, ensure equal pay for equal work, and promote full-time and permanent jobs. That’s in addition to providing ten paid sick days annually with another 14 paid sick days during a pandemic, status for all, just cause protection from wrongful dismissal, an end to misclassification of gig workers, and access for all to a union.
Check out their list of events, including the “Enough Is Enough” day of action on June 3 from 12 p.m. to 2 pm.
In the meantime, the Ontario Health Coalition is holding a citizens’ referendum throughout May. Ontarians, 16 years of age and over, are being asked to vote on the privatization of hospital services.
The goal is to collect one million votes against privatizing hospital services. The results will be delivered to Ford so he understands that Ontarians value publicly funded health care for everyone.
In-person voting is being held on May 26 and 27, but you can vote online right now.
A version of this article first appeared on Small Change.
Support rabble today!
We’re so glad you stopped by! Thanks for consuming rabble content this year.
rabble.ca is 100% reader and donor funded, so as an avid reader of our content, we hope you will consider gifting rabble with a donation during our summer fundraiser today.
Whether it be a one-time donation or a small monthly contribution, your support is critical to keep rabble writers producing the work you’ve come to rely on as a part of a healthy media diet.
Become a rabble rouser — donate to rabble.ca today.
Nick Seebruch, editor
